How to Capture Character in Detail: Drawing People, Ghosts

Post 5

10/03/2025

It’s time for the big people! So as not to be creepy and go around taking close-ups of strangers, the reference photo that I used for this exercise was of myself. Going back to my research, there were a few guidelines that I have learned for drawing people close-up that I used to get through this drawing. 

Body proportions: the dot method

Following the same 3/3 rule as I did for the small and medium sized people, I used six dots on the photo to guide me on where the shoulders, hips, and ankles are.

From there, I sketched out a rough outline of my model’s (me) form. 

Going in after and adding more detail, including shoes, hands, and clothes. 

Because this is meant to be a sketch and not a realistic drawing, I tried not to get too caught up in worrying about accuracy and detail, but instead focused on getting the idea of the figure down on paper. I had to keep reminding myself that the drawing was meant to be recognizable, but not a copy. Every time I made a line or a mark that I worried looked bad or wrong, I would tell myself that it added character. I left the face for last.

The face: ⅓ rule

For the face, I followed the guide explained in one of the youtube videos I watched (linked below). Starting with the rough outline I had already made before, I then went on to add a line to separate the face from the hair. 

After that, I drew in three faint lines marking where the 3rds of the face are.

In the first third, I added the eyes and eyebrows. Again, I was trying to focus on getting the general shapes and ideas down on paper, and not worrying about how realistic the drawing was. It was hard not to worry. 

In the second third, I added the nose. Or, rather, the idea of the nose. Character, right?

In the third and final third, I added a few marks to hint at a mouth. And the drawing was complete!

By no means does the drawing look like a mirror image of me, but it is a recognizable drawing of a girl. The proportions aren’t perfect, but also aren’t off enough that it distracts from the focus of the piece. Now that I feel I can get at least the general idea of people and buildings down on paper, it’s time to tackle all the other odd objects next!

Helpful videos: